CALIFORNIA DNC PRESS DEMOCRAT MAY 2017 PAGE 1 DNC CHAIR NAMES TRANSITION ADVISORY TEAM BY MICHAEL KAPP, DNC MEMBER At the end of February, the DNC met in Atlanta for our Winter Meeting. Our main responsibility was electing new DNC officers. For me, this meeting was a culmination of months of organizing and campaign- ing nationally for my can- didate for DNC Chair (and the clear favorite of Cali- fornia Democrats): Keith Ellison, the congressman from Minnesota. While the DNC elections California DNC Members in Atlanta did not turn out the way many California Demo- crats wanted (for the rec- ord, 18 out of 20 of Cali- DNC DEPUTY CHAIR PLAYS A SIGNIFICANT ROLE fornia’s elected DNC members voted for El- BY ALEX GALLARDO ROOKER AND KEITH UMEMOTO, DNC RBC MEMBERS lison), I was pleased that the first act of new DNC Chair Tom Perez was to New DNC National Chairper- specify that the Treasurer and ask the membership to son Tom Perez’s first act was to National Finance Chair are suspend the rules and get unanimous consent to have members of the DNC Budget appoint Keith Ellison as Rep. Keith Ellison named the and Finance Committee, but Deputy Chair. DNC’s Deputy Chair. that is essentially it. In March, Chair Perez What does it mean for Rep. Does this mean that Deputy announced a 36 member Ellison to be the DNC Deputy Chair Ellison holds a simply Transition Advisory Com- Chair? ceremonial position? No, there mittee that drew from The Charter and Bylaws of is precedence for having a Dep- Democratic leaders the Democratic Party of the uty Chair of the DNC, or in an- throughout the country. I United States do not include other case, a Chair of the Voting was humbled to be ap- any language for this position. Rights Institute. CDP Vice Chair Alex pointed, along with current Furthermore, in examining other These responsibilities and Rooker is Treasurer of and former elected offi- codified DNC officer positions past examples are far from cer- the Association of State cials, labor leaders, and except for the Chair, the Charter emonial, as they have strength- Democratic Chairs Democratic Party activists. and Bylaws provide minimal to ened the Democratic Party and This committee is charged no specificity of officer roles and the DNC. with providing sugges- responsibilities, other than being tions, feedback and advice In 2001, Terry McAuliffe was members of the Executive Com- elected National Chair of the on the following three pri- mittee. ority areas: DNC. He recruited Mayor The Chair has specific duties Maynard Jackson, who had 1) Building a Party that outlined in Article Six of the dropped out of the Chair’s race, reaches into and rep- Charter and Section 12 of the to focus on national develop- resents every corner Bylaws. This includes calling ment and operate the Voting of America; and presiding over DNC meet- Rights Institute. 2) Expanding and ings, serving as the DNC’s Following the 2000 Presi- strengthening partner- Chief Executive Officer and dential election, Mayor Jack- ships, identifying out- carrying out the policies and son’s role was significant. Vice reach opportunities programs of the National Con- President Al Gore had conced- Keith Umemoto and bolstering grass- vention and DNC. The Bylaws ed and W. Bush became the is a Co-Chair of the CDP Credentials Committee Continued on Page 3 Continued on Page 5 MAY 2017 CALIFORNIA DNC PRESS DEMOCRAT P AGE 2 POPULAR VOTE vs. ELECTORAL COLLEGE BY REP. BARBARA LEE, DNC MEMBER Like you, since election and often un-constitutional with his extreme right-wing night, I have been resist- policies of the Trump ad- agenda and self-professed goal: ing this un-American ministration. We have “the destruction of the adminis- Trump agenda. fought tooth and nail trative state.” Ste- On January 6th, I took to against Trump's unqualified ve Bannon must go and we are the House Floor to object billionaire appointees, and building the bold and fierce to the certification of the his vicious attacks on the grassroots resistance to make it Electoral College based independent press, envi- happen. on Russian interference in ronment, immigrants, Mus- We must stay woke in these our elections, violations of lims, women, and civil and upcoming battles and keep the Voting Rights Act and human rights. up the pressure. Grassroots massive voter suppres- As we all know, one of efforts in places like Alameda sion. the chief architects of the and Berkeley, in my district, On January 20th, I boy- most insidious polices com- where city councils passed cotted Trump’s inaugura- ing from the White House is unanimous resolutions sup- tion and spent the day Steve Bannon. In Febru- porting an investigation into the uplifting the resistance ary, I introduced a resolu- possible impeachment of Presi- with Michael Moore, tion in Congress and at the dent Donald Trump, are an im- Ashely Judd and so many DNC winter meeting calling portant tool for organizing and DNC Member Barbara Lee of our passionate allies. for Steve Bannon's removal should be applauded and repli- represents California’s 13th On January 21st, I from the National Security cated. District in Congress marched alongside the Council. While I’m pleased Together we will continue to hundreds of thousands of the DNC adopted the reso- build out and execute our re- women and allies gath- lution, and I am relieved sistance roadmap: one that ered on the National Mall, that he was removed from takes our fight to red districts and in solidarity with the the NSC, his continued and states across the country, millions more who un- presence in Trump's ad- and propels us to victory in leashed the power of the ministration is a direct 2018 and beyond. resistance across the threat to our rights and our I'm proud to be your partner in country and the globe. values. these battles. Our work together In the months since, I As long as Steve Bannon is creating a stronger, more have taken to the House is part of this administra- progressive Democratic Party. floor and to the streets to tion, he will continue to Stay Woke- resist the cruel, dangerous inflict chaos on our country Barbara DEMS NEED TO TALK AT STREET LEVEL, NOT COLLEGE LEVEL BY BOB MULHOLLAND, DNC MEMBER A staffer said this in Boxer & Feinstein won) years. In 2016, Trump had a November 1972, "I don't were 79% of the elec- "cause," which resonated es- know how George torate and last November pecially with white voters with- McGovern lost 49 states. for the first time were be- out a college education. Everyone I know voted low 50% (48%). Secretary Trump's cause was stopping for McGovern." Even Clinton won by 4,269,978 Mexican-Americans, Muslims today when I give talks votes or by 30.1 points. and immigrants from moving and state that no Demo- In 1960, 43 year old into your neighborhood. The cratic presidential candi- Democratic candidate, KKK loved it. dates has won the white John Kennedy, running Modern Democrats, full of vote since LBJ in 1964, against the incumbent 47 Ivy League graduates, think some activists will say year old Vice President campaigns are like a class- "that can't be true be- Richard Nixon, accused room discussion, 50 students cause all my white Nixon of a missile gap and with above average IQ listen- friends voted Democrat- not having a secret plan to ing to your every word. Cam- ic." In 2010, Governor Bob Mulholland invade Cuba. Both charg- paigns are cage fights. Many Jerry Brown beat Meg resides in Chico and can es were absolutely "Fake highly educated liberals want Whitman by 13 points, be reached at News." Kennedy created to believe that candidates can but he lost the white vote [email protected] his own campaign narra- explain things. Romney sum- by 3 points. and tive. In 1992, Bill Clinton marized it best in 2012. "If @chico.bob Nationally, whites are had his own narrative - you're explaining something, 70% of the electorate; "I'm a new kind of Demo- you're losing." Trump never however, in 1992, whites crat." It was a good con- explained things, just attacked. were 87%. In California, trast to the Democratic Continued on Page 5 whites in 1992 (Clinton, Party of the previous 30 MAY 2017 CALIFORNIA DNC PRESS DEMOCRAT P AGE 3 DEMOCRATS REFUSE TO ROLL OVER ON GORSUCH GOP SENATORS UPEND TRADITION AND CONFIRM HIM ANYWAY BY LAURENCE ZAKSON, DNC MEMBER Over 400 days after the (including some refined in mon sense and fairness.” death of Antonin Scalia and the DNC war room) in an Gorsuch also advanced a after having deprived Presi- effort to derail the Gorsuch novel interpretation of federal dent Obama of the oppor- nomination, but GOP Sena- law that would dramatically tunity to have his nominee, tors refused to consider any reduce the education assis- Judge Merrick Garland, even of them. Among these ar- tance granted to parents of given the courtesy of a hear- guments was a call for the children with disabilities—a ing, the GOP-dominated Senate not to hold a vote decision the US Supreme Senate confirmed Neil Gor- on Donald Trump’s Su- Court rejected during the such as the 113th Supreme preme Court nominee while confirmation process. Fur- Court Justice and, on April his administration is under ther, Gorsuch has pioneered 10, 2017, now-Justice Gor- the cloud of an active FBI a novel standard for judicial such took the oath of office. investigation into ties to a review that would allow cor- To bring this about, the Re- hostile foreign power.